After the ghost-hunting master descended the mountain, his fame spread throughout the capital.

Wang Dazhuang frantically moved around in his new body, first touching his strong arms with delight, then looking down at his broad chest, grinning from ear to ear.

But soon, as if realizing something, he hurriedly reached out and touched his face.

There was no bronze mirror here, so he couldn't see his handsome appearance.

"Master!" He pointed to his face, looking expectantly at Jiang Dusheng, "What do I look like now?"

Jiang Dusheng's gaze fell on the hideous scar on his left cheek that ran from his brow bone to his chin. It looked particularly terrifying in the moonlight, and the corner of his mouth twitched involuntarily.

She suppressed a laugh and said in a serious tone, "Very...manly."

"Really?!" Wang Dazhuang's eyes lit up, and he spun around with delight, his paper robes rustling. "Then I'm going out to play!"

After saying that, he took a running start and, taking advantage of the paper figure's lightness, jumped over the wall and landed outside the courtyard, even whistling triumphantly.

Jiang Dusheng watched the burly figure disappear over the wall and remained silent for a moment.

Xie Jinchen calmly dusted off his sleeves: "What's wrong with you? Why won't you use the door?"

Seeing that the troublesome person had finally left, he immediately pulled Jiang Dusheng towards the side room.

The days of travel had left faint dark circles under his eyes, and his voice was weary: "Go back and rest. I haven't had a full night's sleep in days."

Jiang Dusheng suddenly stopped behind him, letting him tighten his grip on the hand he was holding.

She tilted her head, looking at Xie Jinchen with a half-smile: "Why did you deliberately give Dazhuang a scar on his face? You knew that his face was what he cared about most."

Xie Jinchen paused slightly, his expression unchanged, even speaking with self-righteousness: "Who told him to disturb us?"

Seeing Jiang Dusheng raise an eyebrow, she added, "I'll give him a better haircut tomorrow."

Under the moonlight, his deep-set eyes lost their usual coldness, showing a hint of weariness and softness, revealing a youthful air.

Looking at him like this, Jiang Dusheng suddenly felt a slight stirring in her heart, as if she had been gently brushed by a feather.

She didn't say anything more, letting him lead her by the hand towards the side room.

Outside the courtyard wall, Wang Dazhuang was excitedly controlling his new body, traversing the night market of Qingzhou City.

He was completely oblivious to the horrified reactions of passersby when they saw the hideous scar on his face. He was too busy excitedly looking around, occasionally touching his imposing new face with great pride.

"Brave man..." A sugar figurine vendor tremblingly offered a sugar figurine, "It's...it's for you to have, please don't stand in front of your stall anymore, it's scaring away all the customers..."

Wang Dazhuang was stunned for a moment, then he realized what was going on. He knew it!

Prince Xie is not a good person!

He snorted coldly, not caring at all, and continued to rampage through the night market while humming a little tune.

Wherever they went, the crowd automatically parted to make way, an effect comparable to an official escort.

The next morning, the thin fog had not yet dissipated.

Jiang Dusheng and Xie Jinchen quietly left the city with only a few dozen guards.

Everyone dressed as ordinary merchants, concealing their brilliance.

Inside the carriage, Jiang Dusheng took out several yellow talisman papers and drew several swift movement talismans.

The moment the talisman was completed, a flash of inspiration appeared.

She distributed the talismans to the guards driving the carriage and several lead horses.

"Apply it to the shafts of the carriage and the body of the horse to increase its stamina," she explained simply.

The guards did as instructed.

The moment the talisman was affixed, the speed of the ordinary carriage suddenly increased, the scenery on both sides rushed past, and only a faint dust remained on the official road, which was quickly swallowed up by the morning mist.

What would normally take half a day to travel, with the aid of the Swift Travel Talisman, took less than two hours to reach the location marked in the secret letter where the prince's entourage was scheduled to rest.

"Your Highness," the guard reported in a low voice as he returned from the front, "there is a teahouse by the official road about five miles ahead. The Crown Prince's entourage did indeed rest there. There are about five hundred guards, in the style of the Imperial Guard."

"In addition, there were twelve monks who were very conspicuous. They did not huddle with the other guards, but formed their own group. They appeared to be meditating and chanting scriptures, but in fact, their eyes were alert and their breathing was long and deep. They were definitely not ordinary monks."

"Especially one old monk, who seemed to be resting with his eyes closed, but I always felt that he... seemed to know we were nearby."

Xie Jinchen squinted at the rising smoke in the distance, his fingertips unconsciously stroking the hilt of his sword.

"All of you, stay hidden here and provide backup. If you see a signal or notice anything unusual, immediately move towards the teahouse to ensure the Crown Prince's safety."

He paused, "Just in case that old bald donkey gets desperate and tries to take us hostage."

He took off the jade pendant from his waist and handed it to the guard, saying, "If you meet the Crown Prince, do not stop or wait for us. Immediately escort him to Qingzhou as fast as possible and hand him over to Cui Yan. If you encounter any obstacles along the way, show this pendant; seeing the pendant is like seeing me."

"yes!"

After everything was arranged, Xie Jinchen looked at Jiang Dusheng, about to say something, when she saw her gaze shift to Wang Dazhuang, who was standing next to her, looking at the scar on his face in the reflection of a small puddle and sighing.

A smile suddenly flashed in Jiang Dusheng's eyes, and he said, "Dazhuang."

Wang Dazhuang was lamenting his difficult life as a ghost, staring at the disfigured face reflected in the water, when he heard the voice and immediately looked up, forcing a pitiful expression on his scarred face: "Master..."

Jiang Dusheng's lips curled into a meaningful smile as he slowly asked, "Would you like... a better body?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Dazhuang was first taken aback, then his eyes lit up.

He immediately darted to Jiang Dusheng like a dog spotting a bone, nodding repeatedly, his paper-thin body almost falling apart with excitement:

"I want to think about it! Of course I want to! Master, you are truly a savior from suffering! This scarred face is just too... too unsightly! Although I am a ghost, I also want to be a handsome and dashing ghost!"

Looking at his silly appearance, Jiang Dusheng's smile deepened. He thought to himself: It's only because this guy died young and is still so silly after death that he's easy to fool... no, easy to help.

Five miles away, beside the official road, is a teahouse.

Crown Prince Chu Jingyu's entourage is resting here.

Five hundred imperial guards, their helmets gleaming, had dismounted to rest but remained vigilant, surrounding the teahouse with several layers of guards.

The teahouse owner was a thin, old man who was serving the best tea and snacks with trepidation, barely daring to breathe.

There was a tense silence in the air, broken only by the occasional snort of the horses and the slight scraping of their armor.

Abbot Hong'an held his prayer beads, looked up at the sky as the sun rose higher, and then glanced in the direction of Qingzhou City, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

He rose, walked to the Crown Prince who was drinking tea, clasped his hands together, and spoke in a calm yet urging tone:

"Amitabha. Your Highness, it is already noon, a good time to travel. Qingzhou City is not far away. The sooner we set off, the sooner we can investigate the case, reassure the people, stabilize the court, and live up to His Majesty's trust."

Chu Jingyu put down his teacup, glanced at the sky, and silently estimated the time.

After receiving the secret letter, Xie Jinchen, given his style of doing things and the distance between Qingzhou and here, should arrive soon if he travels at full speed.

He was about to get up and give the order, following Hong An's suggestion—

"Help! Master! Help!"

A sudden, plaintive cry for help from a woman came from a forest path on the other side of the official road.